Fire Cat and Water Dog
by TinySprite
Summary: Grin's been having disturbing dreams lately. Could they deal with someone that he barely glimpses in the stands during a game or is something else going on... no pairings
1. Chapter 1

TinySprite: (Doesn't say much, but does wave at readers)

Mallory: Uh, apparently the authoress is in a bit of a dark mood…so (looks at everyone else) just go on with the disclaimer?

Everyone: (All nod in agreement)

**Disclaimer: **TinySprite owns nothing of the Mighty Ducks nor will she ever, unless it's made available to the public.

Duke: Who wrote that?

Tanya: (shrugs) It was on a piece of paper that Tiny gave me.

(-)

She shrieked, head tossing back as tears fell down her face, tracing old tracks and making new ones. The pain was obviously overbearing, yet she couldn't seem to do anything about it.

Closer inspection revealed that she dangled in the air, unseen chains holding her so tight that clear indentations were left on her skin.

Another scream tore its way out of her throat, more tears wetting her face and sliding down her neck. Whimpers leaked out from between her lips as it seemed that the chains tightened. The sound of bone starting to break filled the air.

Just as the first 'snap' whipped through the air, she jerked her head to the side and looked straight at him. His hands had been close to grabbing what he'd assumed had been the anchoring of one of the chains.

His intent was to free her, but something in her eyes stopped him. They were begging, yes, but not for freedom.

They actually seemed to beg him to step away, to leave her be in this strange torture. Words, weak and choked, fell from her lips.

"P-please…my…my pain….don't," She inhaled sharply, a tiny cry sneaking out. "Don't take it away!"

The shout startled him, making him jump back. Immediately guilt assaulted him. He _had_ to help, no matter what.

Her whisper was so soft; he almost missed it as her ribs started to give in to the increasing pressure.

"My pa-pain….it's all…I have…now so….please….puh-please," She began to cry harder," don't take it away…from me…"

Suddenly she did something he thought that no one would be able to do in that condition. She _smiled_, blood now dripping down her chin from internal bleeding. The crimson fluid mixed with her tears, effectively making it seem that there was more of it than there actually was.

A loud 'crack' told all that her spine had just been broken…

….and with that Check Hardwing, also known simply as Grin to his friends, jolted awake, startled, scared and deeply confused by what could have only been a nightmare.

Yet something deep inside told him that it was more than that…..

(-)

TinySprite: I kinda got tired of all the happy stories and all the drama dealing with Nosedive (knows quite well that she has no right to talk). So here's something of my darker mind.

Dragaunus: I get the feeling that I will not be the only villain this time around.


	2. Chapter 2

TinySprite: (Just waves at the readers again, sulking at the computer)

Tanya:…Y'know, I'm almost starting to miss the old authoress….

Wildwing: Speak for yourself! (Places himself protectively in front of Nosedive…or rather the place he was stashed in to protect him from TinySprite….)

Duke: (Just growls, fingering his saber threateningly)

Mallory: If anyone's wondering, he's still mad about finding out there was no contract between Phil and the authoress. (Looks at the readers) If any of you are confused, just check out 'Cursed Egg' chapter 10's chapter opening. It's in that part with the disclaimer.

Tanya: Speaking of which, whose turn is it this time?

Canard: I think it's mine.

**Disclaimer: **TinySprite owns nothing of the Mighty Ducks beyond story plots and related OC's. …yet even that seems too much….

Phil: Want me to sue her?

(-)

Stumbling into his small bathroom, Grin turned on the cold water faucet in his sink. He cupped his hands in the stream and promptly splashed the wakening liquid onto his face, chasing away the last dregs of sleep and somewhat cleaning his facial feathers of sweat caused by his nightmare.

But it'd felt so real….trying to analyze it further, Grin splashed his face again before turning off the water and grabbing the towel he kept next to the sink. Drying his face off, the gentle giant felt wide awake now yet no closer to an answer that was satisfying enough about that dream.

What did it mean? It suggested that he needed to help someone but at the same time the person didn't want help. He knew it was female but didn't know the species as she'd been blurry, as if stuck between forms. It strangely reminded him of Chameleon when the shape shifter was in that stage between forms as nothing but a green blob-like being.

Except the girl in his dream had been lightly tanned and hadn't been glowing…..or had she? Grin groaned, putting a hand on the side of his face as the other dropped the towel back onto the sink's counter. Great, now he was losing the details.

Maybe some meditation would do him good, yeah, that was it. Flicking the light back off, the gray duck went back into his bedroom to arrange the crystals and candles. It took him a few minutes to locate his matchbook. Oddly it was on the floor next to his dresser when he could have sworn he'd left it on top of the dresser.

After getting everything ready, Grin sat down in the lotus position, hands on his knees as he closed his eyes and began the slow breathing rhythm that helped ease his mind and order his thoughts. Tonight though, it didn't seem to be working.

He simply had too much nervous energy to deal with right now. With a sigh he stood up once more, deciding that perhaps a walk would do him some good. Searching for his shoes, Grin located a sheet of paper and a pencil to jot down a quick note in case any missed him while he was out.

The tall mallard debated for a minute on where to put it before deciding to tape the simple note on the wall next to his door where it could easily be seen. That done, he went back into his room to change into something warmer and get a light jacket. Putting his almost neglected shoes on, Grin pulled himself up to his full height. He made sure the candles were all out and finally went into the hallway.

On the way out, he spied a light in the kitchen and heard faint giggling. Curiosity getting the better of him, Grin snuck up to the door and carefully peeked in, telling himself that it wasn't spying but making sure everything was as it should be.

To his surprise, the drake found that it was Mallory and Tanya in there. They sat next to each other at the table with a half-gallon of strawberry ice cream between them on the table, each occasionally dipping a spoon in to get a bit of the frozen treat. Judging from the way the girls were gesturing and their half muffled giggles, Grin concluded that they were simply having a moment of 'Girl Time'.

Not wanting to interrupt, Grin left quietly to the Ready Room, almost wincing at the hiss of the elevator doors as they opened to admit him. Once on ground level, the drake quickly put in the security codes that would disable the alarm system until he shut the door behind him.

Grin stepped out into the very warm night, not regretting his choice of a jacket as a sudden cool breeze sprang up. He shifted his shoulders and walked off down the side walk, taking in the quiet scenery.

There was strangely little traffic besides the occasional odd car, but then again, taking a nighttime stroll wasn't something he did often. At first intent on only walking around the block, Grin had the sudden urge to go to the park. He hesitated just a second before going, remembering that there was a decently sized and nicely kept lake there.

Maybe meditating on its banks would be more soothing than inside his room….

By the time he got there, the gentle giant was so used to thinking that he was the only one outside tonight that the faded squeals and squeaks of the rusty chains of the swing set made him jump slightly. Who else was here at this time of night?

He quietly walked over to the swings, only to find them empty. About to put it off as the wind, Grin noticed that one swing was moving somewhat jerkily, as if someone had just left it. Frowning slightly, he focused his hearing to try and pick out anything unusual.

His efforts were rewarded by the faint sound of footsteps slowly leaving, the gentle crunch of gravel and dry leaves giving them away. The drake glanced in that direction to see a smallish figure making towards the sidewalk about twenty feet away from where he was standing.

Something about it seemed familiar, especially when the person walked under a street lamp to expose brownish black hair that looked like an amateur attempt with an at home hair dye kit. He was about to call out to the figure when a shudder went down his spine.

There was a cold touch right between his shoulders, like something spiritual or unnatural touched him there. A faint, whisper like voice muttered into his ear, sounding dry like the person hadn't drunk anything in a long while (a sound he was only too used to hearing due to the Saurian Invasion of Puckworld),

"Please….not yet. She…isn't….ready…."

Grin gulped softly, beginning to turn around to see who this was only for the touch to become cold to the point of feeling like it was burning.

"Not yet. You…mustn't see…..me now…..not before…..the…time is….right…"

The gray-plumed drake had to strain to hear the rapidly weakening voice. It had to be connected to the figure, for the voice only became fainter as the walker got farther away. Grin hesitated before taking a single step into that direction. He was rewarded with a slightly stronger voice, proving his thoughts about the connection correct. Grin decided to ask a question or two before time ran out,

"Who are you?"

A strained sigh,

"I can't….tell you. Only…she….can…."

Though he wanted to know why, something within Grin's mind warned him it would be pointless. So he decided to take a risk with another question,

"The dream, was that your doing?"

There was the sound of a deep intake of breath and Grin took a few more steps closer, feeling a tiny bit of relief upon seeing that the mysterious person had stopped at the edge of the street as if to decide whether or not to cross it. The voice spoke again, stronger now.

"Yes and no. I was…..able to do the…..connections but….not the content…."

He hazarded another question that seemed important yet strangely clichéd at the same time.

"Why me and not another human?"

There was an odd hissing/coughing like sound that had Grin unnerved once he realized it was the voice's laughter.

"Another human wouldn't…..truly believe. My people…know the….Avians. I know you…..would believe….because of your….open mind if nothing….else."

The figure started to move again, prompting Grin to ask what seemed like the most important question…and once again felt like a cliché.

"What do you want me to do?"

A soft sigh that sounded like a cross between a gentle breeze through autumn leaves still on the tree and lightly rubbed sandpaper.

"Help her….when….the time….is right…She'll….fight…..you….but…I…beg….you…..to…not…..give….up…ple-"

With that, as the small figure crossed the street to vanish into the dark side streets, the voice and its cold touch vanished. Grin gave a light shudder, glancing behind him to see what was there only to be met with the sight of an empty, lonely park.

The tall mallard decided he'd spent enough time outside for now and promptly began to go home. His mind mulled over the information he'd not only received but also inferred from the voice's reactions and refused answers.

So it _was _a human girl who needed help, but either she was too strong willed to ask for it or didn't realize yet that she needed it. The voice was probably a guardian spirit attached to the girl through her bloodlines or unknowingly picked up due to an extremely strong belief in the supernatural. The second sounded more probable, given that a person could only receive one personal guardian spirit at a time and the voice had more or less told him that there was at least one other.

Odd though, that it seemed somewhat submissive to the girl. Most spirits would proudly give him some kind of name, a made up one if not their real one at least. The fact that he had to go to the girl for it made it seem like the girl had actually bound the spirit to herself….but no one did that out of fear of possession as you basically had to expose your own soul in order to properly complete the ritual, meaning it was defenseless and any passing evil spirit (or a bored one) could steal it away.

Still, what was he to do about it? He didn't know the girl's name, stars above, he didn't even _know_ what she looked like or what could possibly be her problem(s)! Though given the dream he'd had, those problems could most likely be self-destructive, like depression or extreme rage, both of which he could fully relate to.

Was that why the voice had chosen him also? Grin placed a hand against his forehead, lightly rubbing. He had a feeling that by the time this was over, he'd have a supposed addiction to Tylenol like Wildwing did.

Had Grin been paying closer attention to the ground, he would have noticed the impressions on the sandy ground next to the sandbox where he'd been standing as the voice spoke to him in its last moment. They could be mistaken for the impression of a serpent crawling through it….had the reptile been roughly between the size of two full grown human males and Grin's own height of seven feet even.

It wouldn't matter now as a suspiciously active night breeze swept through that part of the park, ruining the impressions and also carrying with it a sweet but slightly disturbing female child's giggling mixed with the delicate jingles of small bells like those on some cloth dolls or toddler's shoes.

Grin didn't hear it as the breeze never passed him or even touch another part of the park…

(-)

Tiny: (Gloom cloud) …What? I said I was sick of all the happy stories….

Tanya: (Leans close to Mallory in order to properly whisper) I think someone's been watching that 'Tales from The Crypt' episode video again.

Mallory: (Whispering back to Tanya) No, I think that'd actually _improve_ her mood right now…..

Wraith: (Looking at the readers, speaking with his usual dry sarcasm) I feel that I must inform you that the authoress can only properly update this story when she feels depressed or extremely bitter. Oh the joy…..


	3. Chapter 3

Tiny: (Mutters something, busy flipping through a tattered notebook while tucked into a hospital bed, with bandages wrapped around the top of her head and a large ice pack taped to the back of her head)

Tanya: Uh...wow, where to start...

Duke: I'd suggest the top, but that would take a while, wouldn't it?

Mallory: So...condensed version?

Everyone else: Condensed version.

Canard: Alright, here it goes. TinySprite's muses for this story and Cursed Egg both decided to leave for a vacation...without telling anyone. This left a nice big void for an anime called Samurai 7 to fill. So she's been trying to work on stuff for that, which we wished she'd stuck to, but our good luck didn't last so long...

Chameleon: What happened is that the authoress was reading over some of her old work for inspiration...when it decided to hit her. Hard. With a two by four to the back of the head.

Nosedive: I thought Wildwing did that...

Wildwing: No, that was inspiration, !#$# beat me to it...

Phil: Now for the nice and legal disclaimer!

**Disclaimer:** TinySprite has never owned anything of the Mighty Ducks beyond fan available items and this story plot. Any OC's present are hers, along with anything she has created for this story and/or other stories.

Duke: Wow...I think that's the most serious disclaimer we've had to date...

Phil: You know me babe! I protect my meal tickets!

Ducks: (look at each other then sigh)

Phil: You expected something else?

(-)

In a little apartment not far from the park, a shower cut off. A few minutes later the bathroom door opened, allowing a small cloud of steam to rush out. A small figure emerged, wrapped tightly in a towel.

Slowly, almost stumbling, it walked the three feet across the short hall to another door. This one opened into a small bedroom. The figure went in, leaving the door partially open almost uncaring. The towel was dropped onto the bedspread, replaced by the night clothes laid out on it.

The towel was collected again to be placed in on a bar on a wall in the bathroom, right before the being went back to the bedroom. Curling up on the bed, a thin hand gripped the remote off the nightstand and turned on the tv.

The sound of a late night comedy spread throughout the room, though it really wasn't listened too. The steady, hard beat of some rock band coming faintly through one of the walls was granted more attention. Apparently at least one of the neighbors in the apartment over was home, unusual at this hour.

Snuggling under the blankets, eyes were closed and sleep hard sought. There was work to be done tomorrow and the job started early. Despite the warmth of the bed, the one inside still shuddered as if chilled as a stressed mind finally gave way to exhaustion. So the oddly flickering shadows on the wall were never noticed.

(-)

Once more, Grin snapped awake, literally right before his alarm started. He quickly silenced the annoying beeping noise before returning to his thoughts from the night before. It was safe to stay in his room for at least another hour or two.

There wasn't another game until this time next week, so Wildwing had relented to Nosedive's request to skip morning practice just for today. That left Grin with plenty of free time today to ponder about last night.

On that train of thought, he thought back on the dream, grumbling as it now seemed more faded than it had before. He hadn't had it again like he'd hoped he would when he'd returned to the Pond and subsequently to bed. Apparently it'd been a one time thing, for last night at least.

Searching out some paper and a pencil again, the tall drake sat on his bed and began to write down what he could remember. The list didn't help his mood.

One. It was a human girl who needed his help.

Two. It was most likely an emotional or spiritual problem if his help was needed.

Three. She'd seemed young, perhaps the age of his fellow teammate, Nosedive, but definitely not much older if at all.

Four. The problem apparently dealt with guilt or was of a self destructive nature, as the girl had been hurt _by_ the chains, not the other way around.

He hesitated on number four. Since the chains had been invisible, maybe that meant it was an outside force hurting her or pushing her to be that way? Grin added a side note of that to it, just to be sure.

Five. She was local and if that had been her in the park, then she had either black or brown hair. She was also small for a female.

But then again, a lot of things seemed small to him. He put a question mark by the last part. Grin continued on, straining his memory for anything useful.

Six. She had at least two spirits attached to her in one way or another.

Number six made him pause, thoughtful now. Most people had at least one guardian spirit, whether they knew about it or not. _Two_ were a different story. If she really had two spirits with her, then her spiritual energy would be different from normal.

When a spirit was attached to a person, there was a slight drain on that person's spiritual energy. That was done by the spirit so as to form a connection to better relate to their charge or 'host'. He'd felt the slight tug of his own guardian spirit sometimes during meditation, but had never actually met it.

Guardian spirits were skittish at best when their services weren't needed, preferring to remain hidden until they had to appear or do something. The fact one of hers had reached out to him meant it was a strong spirit, so it'd need more spiritual energy than a normal one.

Add to that that there were at least two around her, that meant she'd have two separate spirits feeding off of her energy. So to find her, he just had to look for someone who had a higher drain on their spiritual energy.

Even with that plan forming in his head, Grin knew it'd be hard. Anaheim was a large city and he didn't simply have the time to walk around, feeling out energies and their many differences to find the right one.

Thinking back on what the spirit had told him, the gray mallard found another possibly useful tidbit. She'd said that her people had known the Avians. Since there were only so many similarities between the Avian cultures and those of the humans, that meant there was a good chance he might be able to find something in human mythology to find who it was he needed to help.

Getting to his feet, Grin tore off his list and carefully folded it into his jacket pocket after getting dressed once more. Finding his shoes again, the drake left his room to head out into the city.

He met a snickering Nosedive on his way out. Correction, Nosedive collided into him and fell to the floor before recovering quickly to leap to his feet and dart behind his larger teammate. Grin raised a brow at him, but an infuriated shriek from Mallory's room answered any and all questions.

With a slight sigh, the taller drake grabbed the younger male's arm and pulled him out of the Pond with him. Nosedive didn't protest, instead he tried to keep Grin between himself and any cameras they passed on their way out.

Finally though, Grin had to know. As they walked down the sidewalk he asked, "Dare I ask what it was this time?"

Dive gave a lopsided shrug, only lifting one shoulder while smiling. "Let's just say Mal Mal's going to be...brighter...for a while."

Grin decided that was all he needed to know for now, not wanting to seem an accomplice to the teen's latest prank, though he technically was already for helping him escape. It was a few minutes later that the teen spoke again.

Sounding bored, Dive spoke up, "So, where we headed?"

Grin pondered for a minute before answering, "I'm going to take a look at the bookstore near the Anaheim mall."

He gave Nosedive a curious look, to which the other slowly answered, "Sounds interesting. Mind if I tag along?"

The other mallard replied, "If you want to."

The teen shrugged again, but with a more sincere smile. Glad for the company, Grin continued on his way, already trying to imagine which of their own mythological creatures matched up with the humans' own.

Both were blissfully unaware of the Pond wide duck hunt Mallory was doing at that moment. A neon orange Mallory to be exact, thanks to some body wash tainted with a delayed reaction dye.

(-)

The Anaheim mall was decently busy, the Monday shopping crowds moving in and out of various shops like a slow tide.

As they passed Captain Comics, Nosedive flashed it a longing glance. It was closed for restocking and repairs as yesterday a water pipe had exploded in the back and flooded most of the store overnight before it was caught earlier today. Thrash and Mookie had assured their Avian friend it'd only be a few days when they'd called him, but it still sucked.

The shop Grin was headed to was old and had been there for several years. Nosedive frowned at the store entrance. A dark brown and square brick building with two large windows, it was done in a classic style with the sun-faded words 'Bernard's Books' painted on both of the windows and on the door window in large, curling letters.

It stuck out like a stubborn thorn among all the newer, more inviting looking buildings. His friends had told him that this section of the mall hadn't been included in the original plans. That had happened a few years back when some of the other store owners decided they would get better business being part of the mall.

Only this store owner had refused to officially become part of the mall. The fact the only other building nearby appeared to be set slightly apart from it seemed to emphasis that fact. Why Grin wanted to come here instead of the other, better bookstores in the mall itself was a mystery to him.

But...he owed Grin for helping him escape Mallory and besides, he was sorta curious about what was inside. Thrash had told him that rumors had it that there were books in there that no one else sold, along with items in the back that had to be asked for, like mummified kappa hands (whatever those were) and such. The brown haired male would have said more, seeing how his blonde friend was hanging onto his words, but Mookie had cleared her throat in that threatening way women do when they're mad and put a quick end to that conversation.

With a slight shudder, Nosedive followed his friend inside. It was surprisingly larger than the outside would have had it seem, but not by much. The area in front of the window to the left of the door had a round table and a few wooden chairs for customers to use. The area in front of the other window was where the cash register was, on a long antique looking counter with a few shelves behind it that displayed an odd assortment of items. Everywhere else beyond five feet from the counter was taken up by shelves upon shelves of books. Nosedive honestly doubted the local library had so many as were in this store.

A tiny, brass bell above the door on the inside announced their presence. Oddly enough, no one seemed to be there. Grin turned to look at Dive, who shrugged and flipped the 'Open' sign over on the door for them to recheck the hours of business. The store had been open for at least an hour already, despite the early time of barely eight.

Nosedive winced at the sight of that, feeling sorry for any employees that worked here. Opening was apparently at seven in the morning all week with closing at seven in the afternoon. Saturday was more reasonable with eight in the morning to five in the afternoon. Sunday they were closed.

A sharp ding snatched his attention, making Dive drop the sign to swing softly on its little holder, somehow on the right side. A quick glance showed that Grin had found a little push bell on the counter. Nothing happened immediately, although both drakes thought they heard a noise of sorts.

After a few minutes, Grin tapped the bell again, getting another sharp ding. This time, the noise was loud enough that they were both sure they heard something, like a muffled request to wait. Waiting a few minutes more, their patience (quickly running out for Dive who was sorely tempted to hit the bell himself this time) was rewarded by the sound of scuffling and a grunt as something heavy was placed down with a thunk.

A slightly screechy noise followed, revealing itself to be a small cart with a bad wheel that was loaded with thick books. The person pushing it was shown to be a girl Dive's age maybe. The blonde briefly checked her out for the sake of it, wondering why a teen was working in a boring old book store like this.

She had straight dark hair pulled back into a loose bun, a slightly tight dark green shirt, and an ankle length black skirt with black slip on shoes (Dive could never remember the name of those). Light makeup consisting of lip gloss and basic eyeliner adorned her face and was complemented by the tiny silver earrings she wore. Her curves seemed to be average enough for a human. The thing that caught Dive's attention outright, however, were the slightly longer than elbow length black gloves she wore despite the hot weather outside. Then again, it was slightly warm to him in this store, so that would mean it was probably kinda cold to her in here...

Her blue eyes looked at them, considering. After pressing her lips together, she took her hands off the cart and placed them lightly on her hips. There was a coldness to her gaze that neither Avian liked.

When she spoke, her voice not only had a business like tone to it, but was also soft like a whisper that had both of them straining to hear it, "Can I help you?"

Grin spoke, leaning forward some to help decrease his height as he found that helped when dealing with most humans, "I'd like to look at any books you might have on mythology..."

He trailed off, a tiny glint of some kind sneaking into her eyes before it slipped away almost too quickly to catch. She pressed her lips together, seeming to think. Suddenly she winced, lifting a hand to hover next to her right temple.

A little worried, Grin asked, "Are you alright?"

The girl nodded, turning her head to the side a bit. After a tense moment, she motioned for them to follow her, stepping quickly into the back of the store. She stopped at one of the last shelves, standing on tiptoe to reach to something.

When she craned her neck to look at them, Grin realized she wasn't reaching, but instead pointing. That's when he noticed how short this girl was, appearing to be able to fit comfortably right under Dive's chin if they were to stand side by side like they were now from his point of view.

The girl's voice got his attention again, mainly because of how hard it was to hear. "These are what we have on mythology right here."

Still standing on tiptoe, she tapped each book indicated. It was nearly the entire row of thirty or so books, several of them thick.

Lowering herself slightly, she pointed to the row right below it, "These here deal with legends and myths by culture. I recommend those if you can't find what you are looking for in the others."

Stepping forward, Grin looked over her to peer at the titles of the first books. With a groan, he stepped back and shook his head. They mainly dealt with the theory or studies of mythology. The second row seemed to be the actual stories, not what he was looking for.

The girl lowered herself to stand fully on her feet, lifting an eyebrow, "Everything alright, sir? If you're looking for something more specific, just say so."

Something about her tone made both males bristle slightly, as if she had just accused them of being idiots.

Grin stood up straight and stated, "I was looking for books dealing with creatures of myth."

The girl blinked, that glint coming back before once more vanishing. Nosedive grumbled to himself, only somewhat listening to the conversation now, his wandering attention roaming over the nearby shelves. He returned to reality when the small female stepped by him with an almost silent 'excuse me' to leave. She quickly returned to them with a step ladder, opening it up next to the shelf Nosedive had been standing against and climbed up it.

Even with the step ladder, she barely reached the top shelf, but managed somehow. Her hands felt around before very carefully and slowly extracting a book at least half a foot thick and wide enough to completely fit over both of Grin's hands with maybe an inch of extra space on it all around. Grin quickly reached up to help her, receiving a tiny smile of thanks in return, the first bit of warmth she'd shown since they'd entered.

She then turned back and snagged a second one just as big. Grin handed the first one off to Nosedive, who nearly dropped it at the unexpected weight, to free up his hands to get the second. Another tiny smile, then she once more grabbed another book, though this one was much smaller length wise, but just as thick.

After handing that one to Grin as well, she began to climb down the ladder, talking as she did so, "Those are our main books on mythological creatures. The first two are a set that list the general creatures with facts and a brief biography on each. The third book is on rare creatures of myth."

Just as she was about to step off the ladder, she paused, looking back up at Grin, "Did you mean any specific creature? Like dragons?"

Despite her still cold tone, there was an underlying honest curiosity to it now. Grin shook his head, although dragon did sound familiar. He motioned to the books she'd gotten them, "These should do."

The girl nodded, "If you need anymore help, just ask me."

Grin nodded his thanks back, holding the books in one hand with little difficulty as the other found its way onto Nosedive's shoulder and steered him to the table at the front. The girl followed with the folded step ladder to place it behind the counter on its side, then returned to the cart and wheeled it off into the aisles, probably to restock the shelves.

Sitting down at the table, Grin noticed he had volume one of the set and flipped it open. Nosedive sat across from him, opening volume two to a random page, more out of boredom than actual reading. The tiny print was hard to make out, but the pictures for the creatures were exquisitely done. It was almost like the creature was about to stand up off the page and scamper/fly/slither off, depending on what it was.

Settling down, Grin got to work researching. The warmth of the store soon got him to slip his jacket off, placing it on the back of his chair. Eventually a light drizzle started it, the delicate sound of the rain hitting the glass highly soothing.

Something flickering at the edge of his vision got Grin's attention, making him look up. With no little amount of surprise, he saw that it was his teammate's aura, for once in a calm state instead of its usual excited one. From the look of concentration on the teen's face, it appeared Nosedive was really into whatever it was he was reading about.

Apparently the quiet of the store mixed with the sound of the light rain had lulled Grin into a meditative state, not that he didn't appreciate it. A gentle rustle of papers somewhere behind him announced that the girl was back in the front of the store, probably at the counter.

Curious about her, he turned to look at the girl. Reading her aura would give him at least a better idea of how to deal with her if nothing else. It appeared normal enough, though it hugged closely to her body. Interestingly, there was a streak of silver, signifying either magic or psychic ability. Meditation to help control either one would explain her aura's form, as she would then have control over her aura to mold it as she pleased.

Otherwise she was very calm, briskly shifting through a stack of papers on the counter. She would read a sheet and write something down before putting it into one of two piles only to grab another from the original stack. Briefly stopping to consult a clipboard, she appeared to realize he was observing her.

The girl looked up, her eyes meeting his as she held onto the clipboard and pen. Embarrassed at being caught staring at her, Grin returned his gaze back to the book in front of him. A funny sensation on his back made him look over his shoulder to see that she was still looking at him. He had the strangest feeling that he needed to leave, now.

Deciding to go with his instincts, Grin snuck a glance at his watch, surprised to see that it was almost eleven. He leaned forward to tap Nosedive's shoulder, clearly startling the teen. Offering a calm smile, the gray mallard suggested, "It's getting close to noon, how about we get an early lunch?"

The blonde teen looked at his own watch, once again clearly startled as he saw the time. He got up from the chair, closing the book as he did so, "Yeah sure, sounds great to me Grinster."

The tall drake smiled briefly at the nickname, going to the counter and paying for the books. They were a bit pricey, but he had enough in his account to cover it, especially since he wasn't one for constant shopping like certain others of the team. Besides, he wanted to study them further at home. If nothing else they made for a very interesting read.

The girl thanked them for their business, putting the three books in a brown paper bag before handing them back to Grin. He gave her a brief smile, as did Nosedive as they left, which the girl returned with a barely there one of her own.

Almost accidentally, Grin looked into the store as they passed the window, catching her eyes again. For the slightest second, her face shifted, losing its coldness for something else that he felt he should recognize. It was only when they broke eye contact that he did. It was a look of confusion, touched with fear and loneliness. That was the same look his sensei had said was on Grin's face, before his training began.

Except...something bothered him about that girl. Something he didn't know how to explain. When she'd looked at him that last time through the window, it had almost been as if someone else was looking as well. A chill ran down his spine and followed him for the rest of what should have been hot day.

(-)

Tiny: (Waves at the screen half-heartedly) Hey, me again with another chapter. I did my best with the aura stuff, but if I made a mistake, it's my own fault. A friend helped me out with it and trust me, she's still mad at how much I bugged her about it. Oh, and I needed Nosedive for this one chapter, not sure if he'll really pop up again here.

Mallory: I'd make a crack at how long you took to update but...

Tiny: (Just grumbles and walks away, wings folded down against her back)

Duke: (shaking his head) Some days it just ain't worth it to get out of bed...


	4. Chapter 4

TinySprite: (Sniffles in corner, clearly fighting a sneeze fit)

Canard: (waves at screen) Uh, hey there, yeah....she just got over being sick so if this is strange in any way...that's why. Okay, my part's done, bye. (Quickly leaves before he can get sick as well)

Tanya: (with a modified face mask on) It's my turn for the disclaimer already?

**Disclaimer:** TinySprite doesn't own anything outside of the plot and any OC's in this story.

(-----)

Surprisingly, Grin met that girl again later that very day, after an unusual incident happened at the Pond. Wildwing told him about it later, completely confused about it.

How it began was simple enough. Tanya had researched and found a brand of soap to help get the dye out of Mallory's feathers. She'd left to get it for her, accompanied by Duke and Wildwing. Duke just wanted some air and Wildwing wanted to get a look at a department store Phil was trying to get the team to advertise for. The three of them had left not too long after Grin returned. Nosedive had opted to go over to Thrash's place to hang out and hadn't returned yet.

When Tanya and Wildwing returned after some time, with carry-out lunch in hand, they found Phil right inside the building, talking to some girl holding a paper bag. Normally brushing this off as a fan trying to get some memorabilia, what interested them was that she pulled Grin's jacket out of the bag and actually handed it over to their manager. (Grin colored slightly at that, realizing he must have left it at the store earlier.)

As the girl turned to leave, she'd accidentally walked into Wildwing and he'd spilled the soda he was holding on her. While he'd been apologizing to her, Tanya had dug out a compact from her purse, opened it and offered it to the girl, for her to double check her make-up (if she was wearing any, Tanya hadn't been able to see) to make sure the soda hadn't ruined it.

What had happened next was the unusual part. The girl turned her face, and saw the opened compact, stiffening. With a sudden move, she'd snatched the compact out of Tanya's hand and flung it harshly at the wall, running out of the Pond as she'd thrown it. She'd passed Duke on her way out of the Pond, who'd managed to grab her purse strap at seeing her flee and hearing the others' yells. Without even stopping to at least squeal at a possible purse-snatching, the mystery girl simply let go of the strap herself and kept on running, leaving Duke standing there with her purse in hand.

As of now, the remaining team was in Phil's office, with the exception of Mallory who was busy washing the dye off. Tanya had agreed to fill her in later on the details. Seeing Wildwing's expectant look, Grin explained, "I went to a book store today. She was working there."

Phil nodded, asking as he reached for his desk phone, "What's the name? We'll call them up and have her come back to apologize."

Grin told him, "Bernard's Books. It's just outside of the mall."

The human's eyes widened, "That creepy place?! Babe, why would you wanna go there?"

Duke, who'd been fingering the purse, looked up, slightly interested, "Something wrong with it?"

Phil shrugged, hand still hovering over the phone, "It's...got some rumors yeah."

Now Tanya looked interested, "Rumors?"

Their manager shrugged again, clearly a little uncomfortable with the subject, as he moved to sit in his desk chair, "The guy who owns the place is pretty old. I think he's in his eighties now."

Wildwing frowned, "What's that got to do with anything?"

Phil sighed, finally pulling his hand back from the phone to run it through his hair, "I'm just saying, the longer someone owns a place, the bigger chance people will claim things."

Grin pressed on, "Things? Like what? It seemed quiet enough when I was in there."

Phil sighed again, "All right babes, I'll tell ya, but this is all just rumors now! Remember that!"

They all leaned in a little further to him, encouraging him to go on, which he finally did, "Word has it, back when he was married, that his wife was a witch and performed all kinds of kooky rituals in the basement there. When she died, it's said he built a tomb for her in that very same basement."

The Avians all exchanged glances before looking back at Phil, most likely all with the same disbelieving look. Their manager held up his hands, "Hey hey now! I said that it was just a rumor! There's also people saying he deals in the black market or that the place is haunted."

Duke tilted his head, still holding onto the purse, "Haunted by what?"

Phil shrugged, before frowning and reaching out for the item in the drake's hands, "Gimme that! Depends on who you ask really. When I was a kid, the ghost was supposedly a past employee who committed suicide for some reason there or it was the ghost of a murder victim. I think now it's supposed to be the ghost of a child who died of a fever or something. Like I said, depends on who you ask."

As Duke handed over the purse with an apologetic shrug, Wildwing questioned, "Why do people say that? Is there a reason for it?"

Phil shrugged again, purse now safely in his grip, "I don't really now. Like I said, the guy's old and the building itself is old too. I think it was something else before it was a book store, but I don't know what. Some people just like to talk about things, you know, get an interest going. Anyways, that place has always attracted odd people. Uh, no offense Grin."

Grin shrugged it off, looking on as Phil unzipped the purse and peeked in. The mallard frowned, "Should you be doing that?"

Their manager nodded, poking a hand in to push some things aside, "Need to find out who she is don't we? Besides it's not like I'm going to take anything out of here."

The man frowned, "Now that's weird."

They all looked at him as he moved some papers and other items to clear a space on the desk before tipping the purse over and shaking its contents out. For a purse, it was surprisingly bare. All that came out was as follows: Two tubes of regular chapstick, a tube of lipstick (the label revealed it to be pale pink), a tube of cherry lipgloss, some random loose change, a crumpled receipt, a couple of business cards, a keyring charm shaped like a small bronze rose, a green bouncy ball (Wildwing caught that before it bounced off the desk), a broken cell phone strap, and a couple of small, unopened band-aids.

They didn't catch what Phil meant until Tanya mentioned it, "There's no wallet or cell phone?"

Everyone cast a glance at Duke, who hurriedly raised both hands and shook his head, "Hey, I might have been tempted to take a look but I didn't take anything!"

To help prove his point, he patted his own pockets down, revealing nothing but his normal items. He pointed at the small pile, "What's the receipt say?"

Phil carefully smoothed it out, "It's for Subway, one of their meal deals. Says here she paid in cash."

Wildwing picked up the business cards as he put back the bouncy ball, glancing over them, "Well, this one's for a store called Kelly's, isn't that a clothing place?"

Tanya nodded, "Yeah, Mallory and I checked it out, they sell more formal items there, as well as fabrics for making your own clothes."

Nodding, Wildwing looked at the other two cards in his hand, "Well, this one's for Ravenous Reader, I guess it's safe to call that a book store, and this one is for some place called Bella Maria."

Another voice cut in at the tail end of his sentence, "Bella Maria? That's an odd place."

They all turned to see Mallory at the doorway, dressed casually and considerably less orange. She shrugged at their expressions, "It's like half costume store, half romance. Most of what they sell there is for that 'special occasion', but the owner's daughter recently started adding other things too."

Grin lifted an eyebrow, "Other things?"

Mallory nodded, coming into the office, "Yeah, all sorts of stuff, like kimonos, unique shades of make up and hair dye, odd hair pieces and other weird things. She's supposedly really into anime and stuff like that, so she talked her mother into adding that into their wares."

The redhead glanced about at them, "So, what'd I miss?"

(------)

Now, after a near hour of explanations later, Grin and Tanya both stood outside of Bernard's Books, peering up at the store. Grin held onto the repacked purse, wondering why he felt so hesitant to go inside. Tanya shifted in place next to him, also making no move to go in.

From the being a simple store that morning, it now held an almost menacing air to it. Grin honestly felt like something would mean them harm if they went in now. A small noise from behind them got their attention, making both Avians turn around.

It was that girl again, except now she was wearing a light blue shirt with a medium blue skirt. The black slip on shoes and the long black gloves were still on. Her make up was gone and her eyes still had a reddish tinge to them, signifying she'd been crying at some point. She looked from one to the other, before settling her gaze on Tanya.

She seemed to hesitate before saying quietly, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have acted that way. Please tell the other one my apologies as well."

From there she almost snatched her purse out of Grin's hands and quickly went around them into the store. As she went in, the menacing air seemed to worsen, making Grin want to warn her but the door had already closed.

He and Tanya exchanged glances, both unsettled by this turn of events. Giving one last look at the store, they both left to go back to the Pond, hurrying for some unknown reason.

That night, Grin had that dream again, just as quick and fleeting as it had been the night before. It only seemed to press home the fact that there was someone who needed his help and he was no closer to offering that help than he'd been before.

(------)

Duke: Okay, clearing this up here and now. I did NOT take her purse, I just happened to be holding onto it when she dropped it!

Chameleon: You do know that just sounds even more suspicious right?

Duke: I don't care! I didn't take her purse! It's all lies! Lies!

Nosedive: (leaning towards Wildwing) But nobody's accusing him of anything...

Wildwing: (leaning back to Nosedive) Guilty conscious maybe?


	5. Chapter 5

TinySprite: (Curled up in bed, snoring away)

Duke: (Waves at readers, whispering) Hey, she's kinda passed out right now, so we're going to sneak this update in.

Mallory: (Holds up disclaimer sign)

**Disclaimer:** TinySprite does not own anything of the Mighty Ducks except for this plot and any OC's within.

(-------)

Her head hurt again. Grimacing at it, she reminded herself to get some Tylenol on the way home today. It was a Friday now, she only had one more day until Sunday, when she could relax.

Rubbing the back of her neck seemed to help, well used to the feeling of her smooth gloves against her skin. This was getting bothersome, maybe she should consult a doctor?

Mentally adding yet another thing to her already massive 'To do' list, she sucked in a deep breathe of air before letting it out slowly. The door to the store opened, getting her attention. It was around noon, so customers weren't unexpected.

What made her frown were who came in. A pair of thin girls slowly stumbled inside, giggling to each other while looking nervously about. She recognized the behavior and it made her frown sharply. Dear God, didn't some of these brats have better things to do?

As expected, the girls stood nervously just inside the door, both trying to whisper the other into courage. Glancing out the window, she could see some more girls, along with a few guys, standing in a clump outside a store just across the road. These dares were getting annoying.

Stepping out from behind the counter, she simply cleared her throat sharply, putting her hands on her hips. As expected, the two jumped a good foot in the air before shooting half scared, half false bravado looks at her. It always both amused and annoyed her how so many people never seemed to notice her when they first entered the store. Was it selective ignorance? It wasn't like she blended in with the shelves...

Both of the newcomers were dressed in fashionable summer clothes with sandals and dyed blonde hair cut in fashionable styles. They eyed her over, clearly marking her as a weirdo in her dark clothes and gloves, given away by the self-assured smiles suddenly on their faces.

She cut to the chase, "Do you have business here?"

They both frowned and leaned in to hear her, as she hadn't bothered with raising her voice. She didn't like these girls, she knew they weren't customers. One was chewing bubble gum, becoming Bubblegum Bit in her mind. The other had a pair of sunglasses on her head, becoming Shades Girl.

SG ventured, "Yeah, we've got business here."

Taking courage from her friend's forwardness, BB chirped, "We wanna see!"

She lifted an eyebrow at them, "See what? Shall I call an optometrist for you?"

Both girls looked confused, SG shaking her head, "No! We wanna see...you know..."

She lifted the other eyebrow now, voice getting placating, like how one would talk to a child, "See what? The pretty books? We've got plenty, but I don't think your usual fare is here."

Bubblegum Bit actually got a shocked look on her face, mouth opening to reveal the now colorless wad of gum. Shades Girl however got mad, shaking her head and pouting in a way that she almost expected the other to stomp her foot, "What the hell?! We wanna see **that**! The tomb!"

Oh, that dare then. She frowned at them, moving her hands to cross in front of her chest, "There is no tomb here."

BB spoke up, talking like _she_ was the idiot taken in by rumors, not them, "Yes there is! Everyone says so!"

She growled at them, "There is no logical reason for a tomb to be here, not to mention the legal hassle for placing one in a building. It's much easier to simply make a memorial."

Moving to be behind the counter again, she pointed towards the outside, "Now, unless you legitimately wish to purchase a book and did not come in to try and sneak a piece of a non-existent tomb out to your 'friends', please leave."

Shades Girl made to argue again, clearly not used to not getting her way, but she cut the other off sharply, "Leave!"

Now she was glaring at them, stance strong and voice sharp. They both seemed to pale under their tans and simply fled from the store, much to the group's obvious laughter. She didn't care that they'd now be trying to claim that 'the bitch inside wouldn't let us down there, but we were so close!'

Annoyances like that didn't belong here, not in this place. Her headache came back, making her now rub her temple. What was with this lately? She'd never gotten them this frequently before. It had only been after dealing with their most unusual customers that this had started happening worse.

She sighed to herself, giving a shrug. It was probably just all these stupid twits, trying to prove they were brave. Honestly though, did none of them stop to rethink half of what was said about the store?

The door dinged again, this time admitting a nervous, yet excited looking woman. The newcomer cast her eyes about, clearly eager for something. She pursed her lips slightly, wondering what this customer could want, "Can I help you?"

Like usual, the customer jumped, spinning around to face the counter. A strangely pleased look came onto her face, like she was about to receive some great treasure, "Yes! Could you please show me where the special books are?"

She gave the slightest tilt of her head, marking this woman as Collector in her head, "The rare ones you mean?"

Collector nodded eagerly, a smile about to pop her face open, "Oh yes please!"

She nodded herself, although much more calmly. Her boss had probably made a deal with this woman and simply forgot to tell her. No matter, she could handle this, "They're in the back, just let me get the keys."

The woman clapped her hands like a small girl, looking fit to burst from joy, "Oh thank you! You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find spell books!"

She froze mid-bend, hand right next to the drawer handle holding the needed keys. Wait..what?

She wasn't surprised to feel just the slightest twitch of her right eye. Was there a full moon tonight? Is that what this was all about? Wonderful...her headache just got worse...

As she straightened herself to set this woman straight, the phrase, 'Wanna see a magic trick?' started repeating itself in her head, wicked mental laughter accompanying it.

Strangely, the woman paled and fled herself before any more words could be exchanged between them. She watched her run away, confused but not really caring. Just one less problem to be dealt with. Now, where did her pen go?

While hunting for the runaway pen, she heard the door open yet again. Taking a calming breathe, she looked up to see who it was now only to meet a white wall. Huh?

Craning her head up revealed the towering drake from earlier this week, looking straight at her curiously. A tiny smile touched her lips. She'd honestly liked this customer, uh...Smile was it? No..Grin! His name was Grin.

Tilting her head slightly, she politely asked, "May I help you sir?"

He nodded slowly, seeming to consider something, "Do you have a minute? I'd like to talk with you about something."

She frowned but nodded. What could this be about?

(-----)

Tiny: (Waking up) Huh? What's this doing here? What happened while I was napping?!

Tanya: (Innocent whistle) Nothing that wouldn't normally!


	6. Chapter 6

TinySprite: (Wide awake now, cup of coffee in hand) Okay, I'm up now, so let's get this done properly!

Duke: I think it's my turn now.

**Disclaimer: **The authoress owns nothing but the plot and any OC's within. Well, for now she does...

Tiny:.....What was that last bit?

Duke: Something you didn't hear!

(------)

As they sat down at one of the store's tables, Grin thought carefully over what he wanted to speak with her about. There were so many questions buzzing around in his head that he didn't know where to start.

She began for him, "Were the books to your liking?"

The mallard blinked but nodded at her, "Yes, they were quite helpful."

Indeed they had been. He'd found a surprising amount of similarities in their cultures. Both had Nagas, Fairies, Ghosts and Dragons, although the Avian version was much closer to the serpentine Chinese Dragon than the more lizard like European version. That was just the beginning of it too, what with the similar Brownies (except the Avian one was more trickster than helper), Griffins, and Mer-people (obvious body differences on that one). There were still others, but those were the major ones.

The only problem he had now was trying to narrow down just what that guardian spirit could be. He hadn't received any more clues to it and the dream hadn't let up, coming to him once every night. It was getting exhausting. But that wasn't what he was here for.

Hesitating, he decided to start with something easy, "I'd like to know a bit about the store, if you don't mind telling me?"

She blinked at him before her face went blank, "Let me guess, you want to know about the rumors?"

He nodded sheepishly, wondering if it was a touchy topic for her. But she just sighed, bringing a hand up to rub her temple, "At least you have the decency to ask..."

She continued on before he could question what she meant by that, "First off, there is no tomb in the basement. I've been down there and aside from boxes upon boxes of things, along with a few large spiders, there is nothing supernatural down there. I'm quite sure my boss's wife was not a witch, but she did have a few eccentricities he's told me about her."

Grin pressed on, interested, "Like what?"

The girl shrugged, "She didn't like animals going hungry so she used to put food for them out back. She liked to experiment with her cooking, to see if she couldn't find some new tasty recipe. Things like that."

Grin nodded, pondering on that. The human went on, "Let's see...this is an old building, so a ghost might be present. I don't think I've met it though, so I'm not sure."

The gray mallard thought for a minute before asking, "What about odd objects?"

She blinked, seeming to think on that before answering, "Well...we do carry some curious items but nothing too out of the ordinary. Really, it's all just exotic bookends and knick-knacks. We do have some rare books, but you'd need to consult my boss for that. I'm only allowed to show them, not sell."

He nodded again, hesitant to ask this next question, "If I may...why did you throw Tanya's compact?"

The girl next to him was silent for a bit, before finally mumbling, "I....don't do so well with mirrors...."

Grin stayed quiet himself, curious as to why, but not sure how he should phrase the question. The store's interior seemed to be getting colder, making him feel like he might want to leave soon. He mentally frowned at that. Was it connected to her? It only seemed to get this way when her mood had obviously soured and it would explain earlier this week, when she'd clearly been upset.

She broke the silence that had uncomfortably settled between them, "Was that all or did you need something else?"

He thought about it, "Actually...yes, that was all. Thank you for your time."

She nodded, standing up with him as Grin made to leave, "Have a pleasant day sir."

He nodded at her, returning the sentiment as he left. Making his way down the street, Grin mulled over this new information. While he still needed to help that girl from his dreams, this one clearly needed help too. If she was a budding psychic, as it was beginning to look like, she'd need guidance in controlling her abilities.

But...something about the mirror thing still bugged him, though he couldn't say why. It was a detail he felt needed close attention even if it confused him. Stars, what he wouldn't give to have his sensei here for his advice...

Upon returning to the Pond, he was surprised to see several boxes next to Phil's office door. Looking inside, he found their manager rummaging through piles of papers, clearly annoyed. The man noticed him and gave Grin a weak smile, "Hey Babe! Your walk go okay?"

Grin nodded, eyeing the office, "It went well, are you cleaning up?"

Phil rolled his eyes, "I wish! Some one messed up my filing system and now I gotta fix it."

The large drake blinked. Phil had a filing system? What was it, a stack each for 'Promote' 'Sue' 'Undecided'? Deciding not to voice that, Grin instead said, "Do you need any help?"

The look of relief on the man's face told him he'd made the right choice, "Yeah, take those boxes next to the door and make sure all's there that supposed to be."

Grin nodded, moving to sit on the floor and opening a box, "Like what?"

Phil grumbled as a stack of neat papers almost fell over, "Just...they should just be past promotions and the paperwork for them. Anything like a lawsuit or something take out and hand over to me."

The mallard made an affirmative nod, poking through the first box. It seemed to be all in order, filled with files of old paperwork and photos of the various promotions they'd done over the last year and a half. Had it really been that long since they'd arrived on Earth?

He mused on that as he pushed the box to the side and opened another one. It sure didn't feel like it. Part of him dared to wonder how Puckworld was doing now but he put a stop to that quickly. It wouldn't do to think of things he had no control over or to worry either. Things happened as they happened, often for a reason.

It was on the third box that this was proven. Picking up one surprisingly thin file, a few pictures slipped out of it onto Grin's lap. Frowning he picked them up to put them back only to stop. Staring at one in particular, he reopened the file to double check it. This promotion was only a couple of months ago and had gone smoothly. Still, he turned to Phil, "Phil, about this one..."

The human looked up from where he'd been elbow deep in a stack of papers dealing with some plagiarism lawsuit, "Yeah, what about it?"

Grin stood to walk it over to him, pictures still in hand, "Was there anything that stood out about this one?"

Phil took the file and flipped through it, "No...not really. We didn't have any trouble that night outside of the normal stuff. You know Babe, fans complaining about luck and stuff like that."

The promotion in question had been done at an away game, in South Carolina. A raffle had been done that night, according to ticket numbers. The holders of the called tickets got a picture with the hockey player of their choice from the winning team after the game. The Mighty Ducks had won that night, so they'd been the ones for the pictures. Phil must have kept the extras.

The one that had caught Grin's interest was actually a picture of Mallory with two people, both of whom had had their tickets called. One was an older man with dark hair and brown eyes, dressed in a thick jacket, blue jeans and boots. He'd given a half-smile to the camera. It was the other that had Grin's attention.

She was a teen girl, with dark hair and blue eyes. She too wore a thick jacket and blue jeans, but with tennis shoes. She'd also given a half-smile to the camera, with just a touch more warmth than the man's. There was enough resemblance between their faces to tell they were father and daughter. The girl stood out slightly better in his memory because he remembered that she'd nearly fallen onto the ice due to her tennis shoes slipping when walking over for the photo line.

Phil looked at him, curious, "Something bugging you Grin?"

The tall mallard shrugged slowly, "Could we get the names of the people in the photos? Like this one?"

He handed that picture over to Phil who glanced over it before smiling broadly, "Oh I remember this one! Hah! That gal got Nosedive in a huff because she waved him off, saying she wanted Mallory for the picture."

Grin frowned, "I don't remember that."

Phil shrugged, "I think you'd already gone to the lockers. The guy said that they had to leave right after the game and they talked Mal into taking a picture with them before they left. That was about when Nosedive skated over and tried to tease the girl into getting a picture with him. They were gone by the time the rest of you guys had already changed."

Their manager handed the photo back, "Sorry Babe, but there's no way to track them down. They weren't required to give names and the photos were technically free. Why were you asking?"

Grin shrugged, "No real reason. Just curious."

Phil didn't seem to buy it, but dropped the subject anyway. Grin looked again at the picture, "Is it okay if I keep this?"

Their manager nodded, giving him a curious look, "Yeah, it's just a copy anyway. They have the original."

Grin thanked him and put the picture away in his back pocket for now. He knew it, that was the girl from his dreams. The one who needed his help.

However, this opened a whole new set of problems. For example, just how was he going to get to South Carolina and was that girl even living there? They could have been tourists that stopped by for a game before going on home.

Great...now he had a headache.

(-----)

Tiny: (grumbling at coffee maker) C'mon I don't have all day!

Mallory: (whispering to Duke) You sure this is okay?

Duke: (whispering back) Hey, Tanya's the one that messed with that thing, not me!

Coffee maker: (Is making coffee at half its normal speed, making noises like it's about to break down)


End file.
